ISLAMABAD: The month of April this year witnessed a slight increase in the number of terror incidents , as there were 48 militant attacks, which resulted in 68 deaths and 55 injuries, said a report released by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS) on Monday.

The previous month saw 39 militant attacks which led to 58 deaths and 73 injuries. There was a 23 per cent increase in militant attacks, a 17 per cent increase in deaths, and a 25 per cent decrease in the number of injured people. Human losses among security forces also witnessed a 35 per cent increase.

The report claimed that security forces responded by increasing their operations against militant groups. Last month, they killed at least 41 militants and arrested 40 others.

Security forces focused their efforts mainly on the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, where they killed 30 militants and arrested 14 others.

“The KP remained the most affected province, with 49pc of the total attacks reported during the month. In KP, the militants carried out 33 attacks which led to 45 deaths, including 23 security forces personnel, 17 militants and five civilians. Thirty-two people were injured, including 17 personnel of security forces and 10 civilians.

Within KP, 19 militant attacks were reported from the mainland province, while 14 were reported in tribal districts of KP (former Fata),“ report said.

Tribal districts saw a 100pc rise in militant attacks. In March, PICSS had recorded seven attacks, while in April, the number increased to 14.

Balochistan witnessed 13 attacks which caused 21 deaths, including 11 security forces personnel and nine civilians. Twenty-three people were injured, including 21 civilians and two security forces personnel. Punjab and Sindh witnessed only one attack each in April, the report said.

According to the Director General of the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), security forces conducted approximately 70 intelligence-based operations daily. During the first four months of the year, they arrested around 1400 suspected militants and killed more than 188.

Published in Dawn, May 2nd, 2023